Sometimes, May conjures up images of sprites and fairies dancing around the maypole. I’m going to steal an image from a recent Dharma talk I witnessed by Robert Brumet. The image is of “dancing with your demons.” As our bones continue to thaw and we shake off the winter blues, we may find ourselves inspired to get outside and be more active. It could be interesting to take some of that energy and try dancing with your demons. Dancing is all about rhythm and flow. Sometimes, you have to let the demon lead the dance. Sometimes, you have take that demon, and swing it around, and put it where you need it. And sometimes you have to hold that demon close, for a long slow dance, so after a while, you don’t even notice it’s there anymore. Hopefully, these tunes will inspire you to do a little dancing with…

T.S. Eliot was one of my favorite poets in college. His dark imagery and twisted perspective spoke to me as a young artist. I thought to be “real” I had to be tortured and cynical. I would seek these things out for inspiration and validation. As I get older, it seems like suffering gets easier and easier to come by. Music has always helped me find the beauty and love attached to all suffering.

“When you know how to listen everyone is the guru.” I used to tell myself that listening to music was the best distraction from things that might be stressing me out or making me feel bad in my “real” life. Now I think about it differently. Listening to music helps me focus on what is really important. What is really important is what is happening right now. Real life is right now.

A lot of us have endured some extreme shifts in weather, amongst other things, this month. Hopefully spending some time listing to this music will help smooth out some of those rough patches. This month’s playlist includes tracks by T. Rex, Cate​ le Bon, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Tones On Tail, Lucy Arnell, Mr. and The Mrs., Sons of Great Dane, Good Saint Nathanael, Major Matt Mason USA and more. Enjoy, and Happy Year of The Pig!

MMM

(Subscribe for a new playlist every 1st Monday of the month. Feel free to cruise past playlists for even more music.)

I’m very excited to announce that I’ll be debuting a new Major Matt Mason USA band at this years Kansas City Antifolk Festival. The new power trio features Bernie Dugan (The Quivers, Brannock Device) on drums and Joel Shields on bass (Dicta, Steady States). We’ll be playing a short set on Saturday, June 16 at The Brick with some other great KC acts including: Here’s To The Life!, Nate Allen and The Pac-Away Dots, Seafoam Galaxy, Nate Cartwright and more! I think it’ll a be great night of interesting songwriters. So, if you’re looking for something a little different, come check it out. Click here for the FB event & more details.